Hot Starts Push Harvard, Ohio State into USA Lacrosse Division I Men's Top 20

It was not a landscape-shaking week for the top 10 in the USA Lacrosse Division I Men’s Top 20. Johns Hopkins (a comfortable 13-7 winner over Loyola) moved up a spot at the expense of Syracuse, which lost at home in overtime to Maryland.

Still, there were noteworthy things happening in that portion of the rankings.

A week after slipping past UMass, Army went on the road to throttle Rutgers 16-7, a thorough shredding of a regular postseason contender.

Maryland’s aforementioned 13-12 victory at the Dome was its second overtime triumph in three games.

And Notre Dame looked very much like a team not content to win one national title, shredding Cleveland State (25-3) and Marquette (21-8) to open its season. It is the first time in program history the Fighting Irish have dropped 20 goals in back-to-back games.

Notre Dame, Maryland and Army all remain in the same spots in this week’s rankings. But each showed quite a bit in the way they handled their business in the last seven days.

USA LACROSSE DIVISION I
MEN'S TOP 20

1. Notre Dame, 2-0 (Prev: 1)
2. Duke, 3-0 (Prev: 2)
3. Virginia, 2-0 (Prev: 3)
4. Maryland, 3-0 (Prev: 4)
5. Cornell, 1-0 (Prev: 5)
6. Army, 2-0 (Prev: 6)
7. Denver, 3-0 (Prev: 7)
8. Johns Hopkins, 3-1 (Prev: 9)
9. Syracuse, 3-1 (Prev: 8)
10. Yale, 1-0 (Prev: 10)
11. Penn State, 2-1 (Prev: 11)
12. Princeton, 1-0 (Prev: 12)
13. Michigan, 2-1 (Prev: 14)
14. Delaware, 2-0 (Prev: 16)
15. North Carolina, 2-0 (Prev: 19)
16. Ohio State, 4-0 (Prev: NR)
17. Harvard, 1-0 (Prev: NR)
18. Rutgers, 2-1 (Prev: 13)
19. Loyola, 1-2 (Prev: 15)
20. Richmond, 1-2 (Prev: 20)

Also considered (alphabetical order): Boston U (2-1), Bryant (2-0), Colgate (3-1), Georgetown (1-2), Marquette (3-1), UMass (1-1), Penn (0-1)

HOT

North Carolina (+4)

The Tar Heels have done what they were supposed to do in their first two games, following up a workmanlike defeat of Mercer with a 19-8 pounding of Fairfield. Dominic Pietramala had five goals and two assists, Owen Duffy collected three goals and four assists and Logan McGovern tacked on three goals and two assists in a game played at Georgetown Prep (Md.).

Of course, North Carolina didn’t have much trouble doing what it was supposed to do against less talented teams last year; it was higher-profile foes that caused it fits. And one of those (one it happened to beat early last season) is on its way to Chapel Hill on Saturday as Johns Hopkins pays a visit. There should be plenty to learn about the Tar Heels next weekend.

NOT

Rutgers (-5)

The Scarlet Knights opened with defeats of Lehigh and Stony Brook, but a visit from Army figured to be a better barometer. It was, just not in the way Rutgers probably hoped it would be.

Not much went right for the Scarlet Knights, who were 10 of 27 on faceoffs (Army star Will Coletti was 17 of 25) and got no goals on eight shots from their starting attack. Rutgers mustered only 16 shots on goal the entire afternoon, not ideal when an opponent scores 16 times. This is one of those things that is tricky to sort out in mid-February.

Was that a reflection of how good Army was, how far Rutgers has to go, or both? The easy out — and probably the correct one — is to argue it’s the third option. But clearly, the Scarlet Knights have some work to do.

Loyola (-4)

The Greyhounds have lost back-to-back games against top-10 opponents after committing 20 turnovers and bungling seven clears in a 13-7 defeat at Charles Street rival Johns Hopkins. After dropping 18 goals in its opening rout of Georgetown, Loyola has combined for 11 goals the last two weekends against the Blue Jays and Maryland. The great thing about Loyola is it annually plays an ambitious non-conference schedule. But some years, it isn’t much fun trying to navigate it. They get Rutgers at home on Saturday in what is clearly a statement game for both teams.

IN

Harvard (No. 17)

The Crimson made quite the impression on the Ivy League’s opening day, scoring 10 consecutive goals in a stretch that spanned parts of the first three quarters in a 23-7 pummeling of Providence. Graham Blake scored six times, and Teddy Malone added five goals and an assist for Harvard. It was the Crimson’s largest output since crushing Vermont 24-6 in 1998. Harvard has a two-game week on tap; Bryant visits on Tuesday before a meeting with Bucknell in Wilton, Conn., on Saturday.

Ohio State (No. 16) 

The Buckeyes earned their first victory outside of Columbus in nearly two years Saturday when they tripled up Air Force 12-4. And at 4-0, they’re within a victory of their season total from all of 2023. Junior Ben Mayer scored four goals and sophomore Dillon Magee added three goals and an assist for Ohio State, which has limited opponents to 19.8 percent shooting and has yet to allow a goal in eight man-down situations.

OUT

Penn (was No. 17)

The Quakers spotted Georgetown the first five goals in what became a 12-9 loss, and their inability to get closer than two goals in the final three quarters meant they didn’t exert much game pressure on the Hoyas. As feisty as Penn can be in February, there’s a built-in advantage for a team playing its third game compared to one in its opener. Also a first-game concern: a 7 of 24 day on faceoffs. Still, Penn is far from finished. Its three-game homestand continues this week with visits from Albany and Delaware.

Boston University (was No. 18)

The Terriers dropped a 12-6 decision at home Friday to Bryant in a matchup of recent NCAA tournament automatic qualifiers from New England. In a continuing theme for teams that struggled last week, Boston University was just 4 of 22 at the X. Next up for the Terriers is a trip to Brown on Tuesday.